The present invention relates to stretchers in general, and more particularly to devices for carrying disabled or sick persons, provided with a special platform to be placed into a transportation means, such as an ambulance or plane.
Devices for carrying disabled or sick persons of the type under consideration are known in the art. Such a device, particularly for transporting by a plane is described, for example in the article by R. Frey, E. Nagel and P. Safer entitled "Anesthesiology and Resuscitation", Vol. 95, pages 213-226, published by Springer-Verlay Berlin Heidelberg in 1976; the device is illustrated in the photograph 20 on page 225. A safety belt system employed in that device includes a diagonally arranged belt portion which is to be extended over the shoulders of a patient and has inclined belt parts, and a belt portion which embraces the patient's feet and is wound about the frame of the device. In the known device,the end of the so-called shoulder portion of the belt system is expandable and is connected to the end of the feet belt portion. The belt portion extending over the patient's shoulders is utilized in conjunction with a feet pocket provided on the support for the body of a patient, said pocket being arranged above the hinge of the feet portion of the support. The described belt system ensures the fact that a patient lying on the support of the device is firmly held on that support and protected against shocks and vibrations of the transportation means, for example in the case of an accident.
Of course, the belt system described in the above reference can reduce acting forces in a transversal and longitudinal directions so that an injury of a patient, which can occur as a result of colliding the patient against the walls, floor, or ceiling of the transportation means, can be prevented. However, the support for a patient in the emergency case is not optimally adjusted because the known device requires two locks, one for the belt portion extending over the patient's shoulders and another for the above mentioned feet pocket; those locks should be locked up when a patient is laid down onto the stretcher and unlocked when the patent is taken off from the stretcher. Further more, it is quite difficult to maintain both ends of the belt system in a stretched condition simultaneously inasmuch as the end of the belt embracing the feet end portion of the support or the stretcher is subject to considerable friction at the underside of the support. These difficulties have been up to now disregarded and no belt system has been suggested to overcome those difficulties. The belt system for a carrier of sick persons is also disclosed in German Pat. Nos. 12 14828 and 12 47545.
Furthermore, some of the known devices for carrying disabled or sick persons are provided with automatically and independently operated arrangements for expanding and contracting the belt and cooperating with the transverse belt so that the belt can yield upon the movement of the patient and by a forcible movement caused, for example during an accident the normal position of the patient on the stretcher support can be maintained. Eventually, however one end of the transversal belt can slacken so that the belt will serve as a diagonal belt (such arrangements are disclosed in German Pat. Nos. 24 53 246 and 25 43 473 and German published patent application Nos. 25 05 444 and 26 47 186). It is to be further noted that in conventional belt systems of the foregoing type forces acting in the direction of elongation of the support for a patient body, particularly in the area of the patient's shoulders are not sufficiently overcome and the control of a number of transversal and diagonal belts is in the case of emergency troublesome.
In addition, it is to be pointed out that sufficient care is not sometimes given to protection of a patient against potential injury in ambulances and rescue vehicles. In all cases a patient lies on a support which is transported by a vehicle. In all the cases a patient should be strapped on the support to be safely held on the support even in the case of an accident. At the same time a patient lying on the support and fastened thereto should not be too limited in his movements by the belts.
Various traffic accidents involving ambulances carrying patients have been examined for the last two years. In one of the cases when a fatal accident happened in a collision of the ambulance with an individual car it has been found that both vehicles had very high speeds. The investigation of the case has shown that even a driver and an attendant had slight injuries although both were fastened by belts. The patient, however, who lied on the stretcher and was fastened by two wide belts extending over his abdomen was, during the collision forced forwards from the support of the stretcher, thrown against the wall of the ambulance and killed.
Usual devices for carrying sick persons have supports which are according to regulations covered by a plate of plastic or aluminum. On the top of the plate is usually positioned a mattress with two lateral pads. These mattresses are covered with a layer of synthetic plastic material which can be easily cleaned. These mattresses are rarely connected to the supports or plates. Therefore, during a crash caused by high speeds a patient may slide along the mattress or together with the mattress over the plate in a forward direction and slip out of both transverse belts by which the patient was fastened to the support.
In the case when an attendant sits at the head of a patient--this happens rarely during the transportation since that space is usually used for mouth-to-mouth resuscitation or similar procedures--the attendant is subject to a great risk because in such a position the head of a patient lies against the chest of the attendant and during the crash the patient can be thrown against the attendant.